QUARANTINE BLOG # 203

October 19, 2020

The U.S. recorded more than 60,000 new cases of COVID-19 Thursday, marking the first time in more than two months the daily count has passed that number.  The nation reached 8 million total confirmed cases Friday with a new surge.  New cases per day are on the rise in 44 states, with many of the biggest surges in the Midwest and Great Plains, where resistance to masks and other precautions has been running high and the virus has often been seen as just a big-city problem.  

So far in the new surges, deaths have not increased at the same pace as infections.  But experts fear it is only a matter of time before deaths start rising in step with infections.  “All of this does not bode well,” said Josh Michaud, associate director of global health policy with the Kaiser Family Foundation in Washington.  “Rapid increases in cases like we’re seeing now are always followed by increases in hospitalizations and deaths, which is what is likely to occur across much of Europe and the U.S. in the coming weeks and months.”

**  The Today Show reports that the Coca-Cola Co. has paid for its last Tab.  The company has announced that it will stop selling cans of Tab at the end of the year, discontinuing the once-popular diet soda from the ‘70s and ‘80s that has developed a fervent cult following from lovers of its blend of artificial sweeteners saccharine and NutraSweet, who call themselves “TaBaholics” and “TaBbies.”  Coca-Cola said that it plans to “retire select underperforming products” at the end of the year, which also include Diet Coke Feisty Cherry, Zico coconut water and Coke Life as well as regional offerings like Northern Neck Ginger Ale and Delaware Punch.  Well, I’m all broken up, but having only tried Tab once (twice actually, the first time and the last time) that’s as emotional as I can get.

**  Since September 2019, NASA has been reporting that there is a leak in the Russian Zvezda (”Star”) module, one of the first parts of the International Space Station that was launched into orbit in 1998.  The module provides all of the station’s life support systems, as well as living quarters for two crew members.  On Saturday, using a tea bag to track down the precise location of the leak, Cosmonauts patched the leak.  The tea bag’s sway in zero gravity conditions towards the air leak was registered by cameras, and helped locate the illusive leak, reported the Russian news agency TASS (Telegrafnoje Agentstvo Sovietskovo Soïuza).  With different reports giving different versions as to whether the patch was successful or not, I was reminded of the Cold War era joke about the two main Communist newspapers, Pravda (which means “truth”) and Izvestia (which means “news”).  The popular saying was, “There’s no truth in Pravda and no news in Izvestia.”

**   Here are some “Thoughts for the Day” sent to QB from our friends in Victoria,  BC.

1. The dumbest thing I ever bought was a 2020 planner.

2. The world has turned upside down.  Old folks are sneaking out of the house & their kids are yelling at them to stay indoors!

3.    2019:  Stay away from negative people.  2020:  Stay away from positive people.

4.    This morning I saw a neighbor talking to her dog.  It was obvious she thought her dog understood her.  I came into my house and told my cat.  We laughed a lot.

5.    Every few days try your jeans on just to make sure they fit.  Pajamas will have you believe all is well in the kingdom.

6.  This virus has done what no woman has been able to do.  Cancel sports, shut down all bars and keep men at home!

7.  I never thought the comment, “I wouldn't touch him/her with a 6-foot pole” would become a national policy, but here we are!

8. Appropriate analogy.  “The curve is flattening so we can start lifting restrictions now?” is like saying “The parachute has slowed our rate of descent, so we can take it off now?” 

9. Never in a million years could I have imagined I would go up to a bank teller wearing a mask and asking for money.

And my personal favorite:

10.    I was so bored I called Jake from State Farm just to talk to someone.   He asked me what I was wearing.

**  Ireland’s Supreme Court has ruled that bread sold by the fast food chain Subway contains so much sugar that it cannot be legally defined as bread.  Bookfinders Ltd., an Irish Subway franchisee, was looking for a tax break for some of its take out products – including teas, coffees and heated sandwiches.  A panel of judges ruled that the bread sold by Subway contains too much sugar to be categorized as a “staple food,” which is not taxed.  “There is no dispute that the bread supplied by Subway in its heated sandwiches has a sugar content of 10% of the weight of the flour included in the dough, and thus exceeds the 2% specified,” the judgement read.  Subway.  Eat Fresh.  And sweet.

**  A quick visit to the jukebox this Monday for an oldie but a goodie, inspired by a comic strip from “9 Chickweed Lane.”

Here is Bryan Hyland and “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini” in a clip that shows a couple of seconds from Dick Clark’s American Bandstand https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KvHuOY_2Ig.  Hyland’s version reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, selling a million copies in the US, and was a worldwide hit.  Several versions of the song have proved successful in various European countries.

**  Today’s message from the Crawfordville pulpit: http://davidsisler.com/christian/Stone_Waterpots.mp3 “Lessons from Stone Waterpots.”

**  Wash Your Hands

We are a lot more conscious about hand washing today than we were a year ago at this time, or even in February of this year.

Direct contact spreads most germs.  A youngster in kindergarten sneezes and covers his mouth with his hands.  At recess, a second pupil holds his hand and then wipes his mouth.  At home, a sister takes a drink from the now-sneezing second child, and within a matter of days, the whole family has a cold, or worse.  Your mama was right – wash your hands.

We are surrounded by logical germ receptacles, specifically handles: the refrigerator door, the office coffee pot, a public water fountain, suitcases, briefcases, and filing cabinets.  Can you handle any more?

In this coronavirus era we are told to wear a mask that covers both our noses and our mouths, and to wash our hands often with a good anti-bacterial soap.  Wash for twenty seconds, getting between the fingers and all over the hands.  Leave the water running while you dry your hands, and then turn the faucet off with a towel.  Keep the towel in hand and use it to open the rest room door.

According to the folks at the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, proper and consistent hand washing is one of the best ways to stop the spread of disease.  And all it takes is a little care and a little time.

Like the governor.  He publicly called for a bowl and a towel and after disposing of the prisoner, washed his hands of the entire affair.  The governor’s name was Pilate.  The prisoner?  Jesus of Nazareth.  Aren’t you glad Jesus did not wash his hands of you?

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